In this busy and career driven climate that Silicon Valley has become, it’s easy to tune out the people around you, and forget to socialize. But has it gone too far? Is our younger generation also heading in that direction? It seems like every corner I turn I find that I get the best views of people’s hair or lack thereof as their head is buried in their phone or they have their headphones on making no eye contact with others. It makes sense with all this fun and new technology sprouting up everywhere, but are we forgetting to be human? Especially as we become parents, are we modeling this type of behavior around our children? It’s no surprise that I find a 2-year-old using an iPad better than most adults. But it’s the tech age so why do we care? Isn’t this what they’re going to end up learning in school anyway? Well, in part yes, but there’s a whole other side of life that looks to be getting pushed aside with all the fun gadgets, and that is basic socializing and interacting with peers.
Socializing is a huge part of learning, adapting, and succeeding. Social interactions and play teach kids to problem solve, adapt to changing environments, learn boundaries with others, and even self-sooth. These are important tools that cannot be taught through a screen; not in the way that going outside and getting your hands dirty can or learning to interact with peers. It’s important to provide these types of environments and learning experiences for our children. They don’t have to be expensive or at fancy clubs. Your local park or community center is a great place to start! Some other things you can do include:
- Having frequent play dates with their peers
- Modeling the behavior at home by doing daily activities together such as cooking or baking, doing puzzles together, arts and crafts, just to name a few!
- Going for neighborhood walks
- Weekly or monthly family game nights
Let’s ensure that our younger generation will not be missing out on this important piece of development! If your child needs more support in developing their social skills contact us at Relucent Psychology Group and meet with our child psychologist, Dr. Jenna Del Valle for child therapy services.
You can contact us or reach us at (408) 680-4114… call or text!
